Gov. Mark Dayton travels to Edgerton, heart of farm country, to talk water quality

EDGERTON, Minn. – Gov. Mark Dayton brought his aggressive effort to prevent farm pollution from endangering the state's water supply to an area deeply skeptical of him and his plans.

The DFL governor traveled more than 200 miles Wednesday to this rural southwest Minnesota region to continue his latest push for what he calls a "water ethic," as well as $220 million in spending that would go mostly to outstate communities faced with aging water systems and alarming levels of pollution, often from farm runoff.

Dayton acknowledged his policies and words had at times been confrontational when he should have taken a softer approach beginning with a 2015 measure to require buffer strips around waterways to protect them from pollution, which has come mostly from two key fertilizers, nitrogen and phosphorus.

"This is not about blaming farmers," said Dayton, whose grandfather owned a farm.

The farming community of Edgerton has been at the center of the state's growing water pollution dilemma. Minnesota pollution officials said last April that nearly all rivers and streams in the region are not safe for swimming and fishing.

It is also an area where Dayton barely won one-third of the votes two years ago, and one that has been a hotbed of opposition to buffer strips and other environmental regulations.

Dayton was flanked by commissioners of pollution control, agriculture, health, and soil and water, who spent 90 minutes briefing and then taking questions from local reporters and editors, as well as elected officials and a few farmers.

The commissioners stressed collaboration and voluntary measures to change farming practices and said no one likes to take orders from St. Paul.

The local reporters asked sometimes technical questions about the rising cost of utility bills to pay for water treatment to deal with farm runoff; shifting regulatory standards that create planning challenges; the lack of data to support certain policies, and big costs to farmers to adopt new water- and soil-friendly practices.

The clean-water projects are part of a $1.4 billion state borrowing proposal Dayton unveiled earlier this year. Republicans have said Dayton wants to spend too much, particularly as the state's economic outlook has dimmed. Senate Minority Leader David Hann, R-Eden Prairie, has said he would cut the proposal in half.

Dayton had an ally in Ian Cunningham, a fourth-generation farmer of crops and livestock who is president of the Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts.

Cunningham was named the 111th recipient of a water quality certification given by the Department of Agriculture, which requires proven best practices in exchange for 10 years of regulatory certainty for the farmer.

"I really bristle at the idea that we need to make some money first and then we can worry about taking care of God's creation," said Cunningham, whose family has farmed the land for 131 years continuously. "I like the idea that we're gonna take care of God's creation and it will take care of us."

Healthy soil and water make economic sense for his farm, in part because they still raise livestock, which helps optimize sustainable farming techniques, he said.

The Dayton administration came loaded with information about resources available to farmers to adopt best practices, including a mix of federal, state and local programs.

The state's water scientists believe rapid, collective action is needed, even if the effort will take years or decades to work.

The Pollution Control Agency and the Department of Health both released reports last spring warning that broad swaths of southern Minnesota are beset with polluted lakes and rivers, while drinking water supplies show increasing levels of nitrogen.

Dayton's $220 million water plan, being considered during the current legislative session, would spend $62 million to help local communities pay for treatment plant upgrades; $80 million to upgrade city water infrastructure; $30 million on helping farmers as they implement the new buffer law, among other projects.

Lt. Gov. Tina Smith did her part pushing the Dayton water agenda the day before in Dennison, where the mayor climbs a ladder underground every day to make sure the Kennedy-era water equipment is working. Dennison Mayor Jeff Flaten, whose full-time job is corrections officer at the state prison, also uses a rake once per week to clear away debris to keep wastewater moving.

Although Dennison is seeking just $200,000 to upgrade its water equipment, Minnesota needs a total of $11 billion during the next 20 years to properly rebuild its water infrastructure, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

"The costs of making these improvements are enormous, and far too high for local ratepayers to shoulder alone," Smith said. "But the cost of continued inaction is much higher."

J. Patrick Coolican • 651-925-5042